The speed of data communication or transmission is a significant factor in assessing computer system performance and is a competitive advantage. Thus, computer manufacturers and programmers continuously work to make data communication as efficient and as accurate as possible. As an example, it is often necessary to manage activities of a local computer or determine the relative health of a local computer system by viewing data represented by screen display information of the local computer and/or interacting with the local computer by communicating data through user input devices. However, it is not always feasible for a technician or other user to be physically present at a local computer to manage the local computer's activities. Present solutions to this problem allow a user to view the screen information of and interact with the local computer, via remote user inputs from a remote mouse and/or keyboard anywhere a remote computer is located. However, due to the limited bandwidth and hence the screen frame rate, the data communication speed of screen display information being redirected from the local and remote computer becomes an issue when viewing mouse movements of the display information.
Depending on how the data is transmitted, screen frame displays redirected from the local computer may appear adequate at the remote computer display, while the redirected mouse movements or functions may appear delayed or sluggish at the remote computer due to delayed transmission. Mouse movements are executed faster than the local computer can accurately represent under screen frame redirection speeds. Previous systems would either turn off a mouse over window option at the remote computer display such that, although delayed and sluggish, only the mouse cursor or pointer redirected from the local computer display is shown at all times or simultaneously display both the remote mouse cursor and a mouse cursor of the screen frame from the local computer.
Previous systems also communicate mouse movements through the conventional mouse port of the local computer as a change or delta from a previous mouse position. This form of communication is sensitive to the mouse cursor acceleration settings of both the local and remote computers thereby also contributing to the sluggish display of mouse movements at the remote computer. The delayed or sluggish appearance causes the user of the remote mouse to overcompensate thereby missing screen targets and initiating multiple mouse function commands.
Further, a simultaneous display of the remote mouse cursor and a mouse cursor of the screen frame from the local computer on the remote screen also adds to delay and complexity for a user interacting with the two mouse cursors, one being a sluggish mouse cursor displayed from the local computer. Thus, costly increases in the time and expenses of managing computer activities may result from the sluggish mouse movements.